page_title: Automaton
section_title: Modern
hierarchical_section_title: Automaton / History / Modern
caption_attribution_description: Tea automat and mechanism. 19th century Japan. Tokyo National Science Museum.
context_page_description: An automaton is a relatively self-operating machine, or a machine or control mechanism designed to automatically follow a predetermined sequence of operations, or respond to predetermined instructions. Some automata, such as bellstrikers in mechanical clocks, are designed to give the illusion to the casual observer that they are operating under their own power. Since long ago, the term is commonly associated with automated puppets that resemble moving humans or animals, built to impress and/or to entertain people.
  Animatronics are a modern type of automata with electronics, often used for the portrayal of characters in films and in theme park attractions.
context_section_description: The famous magician Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin (1805–1871) was known for creating automata for his stage shows.
  In 1840, Italian inventor Innocenzo Manzetti constructed a flute-playing automaton, in the shape of a man, life-size, seated on a chair. Hidden inside the chair were levers, connecting rods and compressed air tubes, which made the automaton's lips and fingers move on the flute according to a program recorded on a cylinder similar to those used in player pianos. The automaton was powered by clockwork and could perform 12 different arias. As part of the performance it would rise from the chair, bow its head, and roll its eyes.
  The period 1860 to 1910 is known as "The Golden Age of Automata". During this period many small family based companies of Automata makers thrived in Paris. From their workshops they exported thousands of clockwork automata and mechanical singing birds around the world. Although now rare and expensive, these French automata attract collectors worldwide. The main French makers were Bontems, Lambert, Phalibois, Renou, Roullet & Decamps, Theroude and Vichy.
  Contemporary automata continue this tradition with an emphasis on art, rather than technological sophistication. Contemporary automata are represented by the works of Cabaret Mechanical Theatre in the United Kingdom, Dug North and Chomick+Meder, Thomas Kuntz, Arthur Ganson, Joe Jones, and Nico Cox in the United States, Le Défenseur du Temps by French artist Jacques Monestier (artiste), and François Junod in Switzerland.
  One of the most advanced automata proposed to date is NASA's Automaton Rover for Extreme Environments (AREE), a wind-powered automaton to be used for exploring Venus. Unlike other modern automata, AREE is an automaton instead of a robot for practical reasons — Venus's harsh conditions, particularly its surface temperature of 462 °C (864 °F), make operating electronics there for any significant time impossible.
  Since 1990, Dutch artist Theo Jansen has been building an artificial breed of large automated PVC structures called Strandbeest (Beach beast) that can walk on wind power or compressed air. Jansen claims that he intends them to automatically evolve and develop artificial intelligence, with herds roaming freely over the beach.
caption: Tea-serving Japanese automaton, "karakuri ningyō", with mechanism (right), 19th century.
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